Communication Challenges in International Cooperation (and Solutions)

Foreign aid budgets are shrinking. In this blog we unpack how international collaboration agencies can use strategic communication to protect and renew funding.

How Communication Shapes International Collaboration Projects

In the international collaboration sector, government agencies support and coordinate hundreds of projects around the world. To showcase these projects, these agencies face a major communication challenge. They aim to demonstrate the local impact of their work in beneficiary countries to taxpayers, governments and parliamentarians who decide on the funding of these foreign aid development projects. In addition, these target audiences do not live in those countries and often lack an understanding of on-the-ground realities.

When Communication Comes Too Late

Faced with this communication need lies a major contradiction: far too often, communication is treated as an afterthought. The agency launches the project, assesses needs, builds local partnerships through a place-based approach and long-term capacity strengthening, and the work begins. Then, when the project comes to an end after several months, or even years, panic sets in: it’s time to report back.

And reporting means communication materials.

At that point, every communications officer has experienced the rush to contact local photographers, coordinate with partners to decide what to showcase, who should speak, and which formats to collect (photos, videos, written testimonies, etc.). Everything is done in a certain urgency, in a largely unilateral way between the international collaboration agency and its partners, without consideration for the international collaboration agency’s overall communication strategy.

The Limits of “Mini-Campaign” Communication

This brings us to a new level of strategic communication thinking: each development project ends up generating a kind of mini-campaign, shared on social media, the website, and with institutional stakeholders. However, these mini-campaigns are developed separately, often at the reporting stage. As communication strategists, when we look at the international collaboration agency’s overall communication, one thing becomes immediately clear: the lack of brand consistency. Formats vary, brand guidelines are not always respected, and the approach is inconsistent from one piece of content to another. But you might ask: does it really matter?

Why Communication Matters More Than Ever in 2026

You can see where this is going: yes, it is essential. As mentioned in the introduction, development agencies face a critical challenge in convincing political decision-makers and taxpayers of the importance of their work. We must also consider the context in 2026:

Foreign aid is under unprecedented attack. It is increasingly perceived as a non-essential waste of money. The list of Western countries that have decided to cut their Official Development Assistance (ODA) budgets has one thing in common: these reductions were made as part of broader budget reviews, without being treated as a political issue in their own right, and without meaningful parliamentary debate on the role and strategy of foreign aid. As a result, the question of the impact of these programmes internationally has not been addressed as part of public debate. At the same time, very few media outlets have questioned these government decisions.

Why this silence? These announcements have serious human consequences. Behind budget cuts lie human realities, people who will no longer have access to essential services provided by international collaboration programmes. This is where communication has failed the international collaboration sector. Many citizens do not know what these programmes are, how they are designed, the ethical and decolonial approaches that have been developed in recent years, the equal partnerships between regions, or the human stories behind them. Communication is not simply a deliverable. It is what makes the human realities of a project visible to the right audiences, and what allows us to convey messages that are both universal and in the public interest.

In the face of these budget cuts, it has never been more important to integrate communication from the very beginning of a project, so that its impact can travel beyond borders, and so that its success stories reach the people who need to hear them. International collaboration is essential to the vision of the world we stand for, one rooted in global solidarity. Let’s make it visible.

What about the EU’s foreign aid budget?

Despite a difficult political context, the EU has maintained a stable foreign aid budget.

The Role of Communication Agencies in International Projects

Building a consistent brand helps increase visibility and recognition among target audiences, thereby securing support for future national budget votes.

So, how can this be achieved in practice, with limited resources, tight timelines, and projects spread across the globe? This is where communication agencies play a crucial role.

Here is how we operate at CREATED Agency:

1. Define Your Strategy

From the project design phase and the development of local partnerships, communication must be integrated from the outset. We take part in key meetings, engage with stakeholders to assess needs and ethical considerations, and build relationships of trust so that they can become the hero figures of the communication.

Following these discussions, and in collaboration with the agency’s programme and communication teams, we develop a communication strategy based on your values, mission, and brand guidelines – ensuring that all content remains consistent with your brand. Once the strategy is validated, we implement it through a communication plan, i.e. a timeline that includes regular content collection throughout the project lifecycle.

2. Create Your Story

To collect content, we collaborate with selected hero figures whom we follow throughout the project, adopting a human-centred approach that positions them as the protagonists of their own stories and active contributors. To learn more about how to select them, you can read our latest blog post.

3. Amplify Your Impact

We publish content progressively across relevant channels and in formats tailored to the target audiences defined in the communication strategy.As the project nears completion, we produce reporting content in the form of videos, photographs, and written narratives – always aligned with the brand established throughout the project.

At the same time, a communication agency like CREATED supports development agencies in applying a global communication strategy across all projects, ensuring outputs are consistent and instantly recognisable as belonging to the agency.

A strategic partner for communication in international projects

At CREATED, we have been supporting international collaboration agencies across regions and sectors for several years. Through this experience, we have developed a strong understanding of the communication challenges that arise throughout the lifecycle of international projects: from design to final reporting. And therefore, we can anticipate them – and solve them before they occur. This is why we are great partners!

Communication cycle in practice: the ProPME project in Benin

Our work with GIZ on the ProPME project in Benin is a concrete example of how strategic communication can transform the visibility and impact of an international collaboration initiative. The project aimed to support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), addressing a key challenge: limited access to essential business skills such as strategy, marketing, and digitalisation, which often prevents entrepreneurs from scaling their activities. GIZ needed more than content; they needed a structured communication approach to showcase results to local stakeholders, partners, and international audiences.

We provided end-to-end communication support, ensuring consistency and impact at every stage of the project. We began by developing a comprehensive communication strategy, including audience mapping, key message development, and a clear message matrix for immediate implementation. This ensured that all communication outputs were aligned from the outset.

Rather than relying on last-minute content collection, we conducted over 30 interviews with experts, beneficiaries, and partners across Benin. This allowed us to capture diverse perspectives, highlight real impact over time, and build a rich and credible content base. Based on this material, we produced a range of formats including cinematic video series, professional photography, and written success stories, all grounded in a coherent visual identity and narrative framework that strengthened recognition and trust.

Content was not only produced; it was activated. We designed and launched an integrated communication campaign combining online dissemination, particularly on LinkedIn, with a stakeholder event in Cotonou featuring product stands from beneficiaries. This created a strong connection between digital visibility and on-the-ground engagement, significantly amplifying the project’s reach.

A key focus of the project was highlighting women entrepreneurs. Through a human-centred storytelling approach, we ensured that beneficiaries were not simply featured, but positioned as active voices and protagonists of their own stories.

This integrated approach delivered tangible results, including strong engagement on LinkedIn, coverage in local media, increased visibility among key stakeholders, and improved accessibility of project outcomes. Most importantly, it amplified the voices of local entrepreneurs and demonstrated concrete impact in terms of business growth and job creation.

How Strategic Communication Drives EU Project Funding and Renewal: Lessons from Cohesion Policy

Alright, still not convinced? Then let me play my final card: research.

Let’s take the example of EU Cohesion Policy (ERDF/ESF) across 11 European regions, including Emilia-Romagna, launched in 2007. It is a well-documented case showing how early, structured, strategic, and continuous communication enables projects to be renewed twice in this case: in 2014 for six years, and again in 2021 for the same period.

The role of communication was so significant that a dedicated project funded by Horizon 2020, the PERCEIVE project, was launched to examine how communication strategies shape public perception of EU Cohesion Policy.

If you are interested, you can read the full report. Otherwise, here is what PERCEIVE demonstrates:

It provides empirical evidence that targeted communication creates a virtuous circle: visibility of concrete impacts → political support → continuous programming (2007–2013 → 2014–2020 → 2021–2027, €1.024 billion ERDF).

1. Making impact tangible
The Emilia-Romagna strategy highlighted:

• 54 post-earthquake R&D projects supporting economic recovery
• the Econer newsletter reaching 10,000 businesses
• education campaigns on sustainable development

One focus group participant described the programme as “a lighthouse in very dark years” : a powerful metaphor for visibility.

2. An adaptive, multi-channel approach

• Annual communication plans adapting to context and opportunities
• An integrated ERDF/ESF coordination system
• A targeting matrix covering citizens, businesses, and beneficiaries (press, web, YouTube, events)

3. A proven virtuous circle
Concrete results → visibility → political legitimacy → programme renewals (three programming periods)

Communication turns billions of euros into visible “lighthouses” that justify continued EU funding. PERCEIVE shows that communication is not a cost: it is a strategic investment in the sustainability of development efforts.

And importantly, this work was not done alone. ERDF relied on an external communication agency:

“With 2007–13, it was not like this at first. We launched an initial tender for three years, plus three additional years for communication support. The idea was to have a journalist working full-time with us, acting as a bridge between internal teams and project partners. These partners were joint ventures requiring diverse skills. I coordinate everything as communications manager. The real challenge is demanding the highest level of commitment from private actors. We often talk about public sector shortcomings, but I see a private sector that is not yet fully oriented towards a strategic planning approach. Take video production: the output is not a single video, but part of a broader series and set of tools. This mindset is not always understood. Today, three actors are involved: project leadership, events coordination, and specialised teams (video, journalism). Integrating them is difficult, as they tend to operate in silos rather than within a unified strategy.”

This highlights a critical point: choosing a communication agency should not be based solely on technical skills, but on its ability to deliver a strategic and integrated approach.

An agency must have the big-picture vision and actively support the communication team within an international collaboration organisation. It is not the organisation’s role to piece together fragmented outputs to create coherence. It is the agency’s responsibility to produce content from the outset within a structured and well-defined communication strategy.

And that is exactly what we do at CREATED.

Why Partnering With a Communication Agency Matters

In the current context, where development agency teams are under pressure due to funding cuts, partnering with an external communication agency to coordinate project communications is far from negligible. It is a practical way to move quickly and effectively, ensure high-quality delivery, and ultimately defend the strength and impact of development agencies’ work before decision-makers. We are here to support you in showcasing the value of your work.